With a piece as complex and layered as alison bechdels biographic exegesis fun home, it can be difficult to find a place to start. A family tragicomic is a graphic novel memoir of the authors childhood, particularly focused on her relationship with her closeted gay father bruce. The book addresses themes of sexual orientation, gender. Though bechdel known for her syndicated dykes to watch out for strip and collections takes her formal cues from comic books, she receives more inspiration from the likes of proust and joyce as she attempts to unravel the knots of her familys twisted emotional. Throughout fun home, bechdel also alludes to and quotes from many, many literary works, including a portrait of the artist as a young man and ulysses by james joyce, a happy death and the myth of sisyphus by albert camus, the portrait of a lady by henry james, flying by kate millett, earthly paradise by colette, remembrance of things past or. To the surprise of many literature junkies and fellow english teachers, this was my first time reading the book. After a downward spiral into drinking, drugging, and purging, doyle found sobriety and the authentic self shed been. The role of gender and literature in alison bechdels fun. Its subject is alison bechdels coming of age, with particular emphasis on her relationship to her father, bruce. She followed the path that seemed right and appropriate based on her catholic upbringing and adolescent conditioning. Sparknotes in preparation for a new class im teaching next year, i just finished reading the scarlett letter.
Their conversation is based around a previously illustrated event the gift of a book with obvious homosexual themes and the halting. Happy death the second chapter in alison bechdels graphic novel, fun home. Fun home is a musical adapted by lisa kron and jeanine tesori from alison bechdels 2006. Your uncle died youre feeling low youve got to bury your mama but you dont know where to go your papa needs his final rest you got, you got, you got. Broadway is getting ready for its most important night. Smile by raina telgemeir is a graphic memoir based on her. This detailed literature summary also contains topics for discussion on fun home by alison bechdel. The creators of sparknotes fun home study guide from litcharts. A family tragicomic is a graphic memoir by alison bechdel tracing her journey from young girl to young adult as she comes to grips with her own lesbian sexuality, her father bruce s most likely suicide, and his secret homosexuality or bisexuality that he kept hidden throughout his life while having affairs with underage boys. Jun 08, 2006 bechdels memoir offers a graphic narrative of uncommon richness, depth, literary resonance and psychological complexity. Fun home summary from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. The pattern of presenting a face to the world that is, in fact, masking a darker reality permeates bechdels memoir. Bechdels rich language and precise images combine to create a lush piece of work a memoir where concision.
The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 232 pages and is available in paperback format. Several publications named fun home as one of the best books of 2006. I could tell you that she is a cartoonist with a long running lesbianthemed comic strip called dykes to watch out for, that she spent seven years writing and illustrating fun home, but everything you really need to know about her, you learn in the book itself. We hope that this guide will provide you a starting place for discussion, and suggest a variety of perspectives from which you might approach home.
As alison grows older and realizes that she is a lesbian, she and bruce are both forced to confront how his repression may have affected her own selfimage and the way that she dealt with her sexuality. Bechdels coming out as a lesbian is complicated by the revelation that bruce was a closeted homosexual whose extramarital affairs. First published in 2006, this graphic novel has received highly positive acclaim from critics. The title fun home is a play on words, commenting on the family business and funeral home in which the bechdel kids spent a great deal of their childhood in and around. A family tragicomic by readbook 19 september 2017 a fresh and brilliantly told memoir from a cult favorite comic artist, marked by gothic twists, a family funeral home, sexual angst, and great books. A family tragicomic put me in the same irritated and impatient mood experienced when reading toni morrisons the song of solomon in high school. It may be that the problems with the opening mythic allusion of the icarusdaedalus relationship coloured the remainder of my reading of bechdels graphic memoir. About this guide the following author biography and list of questions about home are intended as resources to aid individual readers and book groups who would like to learn more about the author and this book. The importance of literature in fun home otherwomenswords. Fun home is the first text of the second semester, a semester that also includes freud, marx and the declaration of independence. A fresh and brilliantly told memoir from a cult favorite comic artist, marked by gothic twists, a family funeral home, sexual angst, and great books.
Jan 23, 20 with a piece as complex and layered as alison bechdels biographic exegesis fun home, it can be difficult to find a place to start. Fun home is, however, fundamentally different from verbal autobiography. As a young debutante in louisville, daisy was extremely popular among the military officers stationed near her home, including jay gatsby. It was also a finalist for a national book critics circle award memoir.
Modernism and alison bechdels fun home a study of the. Like marjane satrapis persepolis, its a story exhilaratingly suited to graphic memoir form. Based on alison bechdels bestselling graphic memoir, fun home features music by jeanine tesori, book and lyrics by lisa kron and direction by sam gold, whose work on this production earned them. Bechdels book focuses on the authors coming to terms with being a lesbian, dealing with the revelation of her fathers homosexuality and discovering the true nature of their entwined stories. Sparknotes film guides are onestop guides to great works of filmmasterpieces that are the foundations of filmmaking and film studies. Miller notes that the narratives of the referenced literary texts provide clues, both true. Bechdels rich language and precise images combine to create a lush piece of work a memoir where concision and detail are melded for maximum, obsessive density.
She is nicks cousin and the object of gatsbys love. Persepolis, written by marjane satrapi and published in 2000, is a comingofage graphic memoir set in iran during and after the islamic revolution. It is evident in the character of bruce bechdel, within whom the theme of artifice is closely linked with the theme of secret sexuality. The first edition of the novel was published in june 8th 2006, and was written by alison bechdel. Aspects of fun home analysis fun home fun home written. The main characters of this sequential art, graphic novels story are. At 43 alison finds herself unable to move forward without looking back and draws her way through memories of her unique childhood playing at the familys bechdel funeral home, her growing understanding of her own sexuality, and the looming, unanswerable questions about her fathers hidden desires and sudden death. Alison bechdels memoir begins with a scene of the writer as a young girl playing airplane with her father, bruce. Get all the key plot points of alison bechdels fun home on one page. I read the graphic novel that this is based off a few years ago, but wasnt as profoundly moved or affected as i was reading the script for the play. A family tragicomic, starts with the death of her father. The best study guide to fun home on the planet, from the creators of sparknotes. I think it was the way the autobiography was condensed here, having the different timelines meetup and interact, as well as having the song lyrics written out, goodness gracious. Alisons grammy lives in the front of the building, with the business in the back.
On the way to a movie, bruce is honest with alison about dressing in girls clothes and wanting to. Vertigo sparknotes film guide by sparknotes nook book. Mar 18, 2014 in alison bechdels autobiographical graphic novel fun home. We believe every one of us deserves equal access to factbased news and analysis. A family tragicomic is an autobiographical graphic novel by american comic writer and artist alison bechdel. Smile by raina telgemeir is a graphic memoir based on her childhood and adolescence.
A masterpiece about two people who live in the same house but different worlds, and their mysterious debts to each other. It is also embodied by the bechdel familys gothic revival mansion, which gives the. Inside each guide youll find thorough, insightful overviews of films from a variety of genres, styles, and time periods. Fun home is a hard book, butfilled with love and hate and glory and discontent and tragedy and hopeits also a powerful one. It chronicles the authors childhood and youth in rural pennsylvania, united states, focusing on her complex relationship with her father. Shortly after this time, alison and her brother christian were born, and bruce and helen purchased the gothic revival house.
Fun home musical fun home is a musical adapted by lisa kron and jeanine tesori from alison bechdels 2006 graphic memoir of the same name. Loaded with literary references and appropriately gothictinged fun home is the bechdel childrens abbreviation for funeral home, the book was included on numerous best of the year lists, including publishers weekly, time, and the new york times. Fun home themes from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. Writerartist alison bechdels book fun home, a memoir in graphic novel format, was published in 2006 to critical acclaim. Essay on the experience of teaching fun home, and why.
A family tragicomic is a 2006 graphic memoir by the american cartoonist alison bechdel, author of the comic strip dykes to watch out for. My fathers death was a queer business queer in every sense of that multivalent word. Described by the times of london as a profound and important book fun home. Fun home delivers the tragedy in bechdels life with comedic aplomb, illustrating key scenes from her childhood and adolescence in a cartoon style that harks back to the comics that came before. A family tragicomic is a graphic memoir by alison bechdel tracing her journey from young girl to young adult as she comes to grips with her own lesbian sexuality, her father bruce s most likely suicide, and his secret homosexuality or bisexuality that he kept hidden throughout his life while having affairs with underage boys the memoir starts with alison as a young girl. A family tragicomic, she uses literary allusions as a way to assist her in illustrating the strained relationship between herself and her father, as well as every other relationship in her life. Fun home summary and analysis of old father, old artificer. A family tragicomic, documents the authors discovery of her own and her fathers homosexuality. Its publication in 2006 brought her wide literary renown. Aug 28, 2015 fun home is the first text of the second semester, a semester that also includes freud, marx and the declaration of independence. Alison notes how books were just as important to bruces intellectual. As kids, alison and her brothers had to do chores in the funeral home, which they nicknamed the fun home. A musical based on the acclaimed graphic novel by alison bechdel. Reminiscent of art spiegelmans maus, fun home explores the relationship between alison and her closeted father, bruce bechdel, to shed light on themes such as gender, the comingout process, and the complicated dynamics of family life.
As alison reflects on her past, she struggles to make sense of it, particularly her. Mourning and melancholia in alison bechdels fun home. As alison reflects on her past, she struggles to make sense of it, particularly her relationship with her father, bruce, a closeted. She uses this childhood game to set up a recurring comparison between her relationship with her father and the mythical relationship between icarus and daedalus. This breakout book by alison bechdel is a darkly funny family tale, pitchperfectly illustrated with bechdels sweetly gothic drawings. If you cling to the notion that the comicbook format is still the. Bruce is responsible for decorating the interior, so the rooms are hung with dark velvet drapery. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of fun home. Jun 08, 2006 having never felt much inclination toward the graphic novel genre, i accepted a copy of fun home by alison bechdel on loan only because a coworker promised that i could finish it in one hour and forty minutesalmost precisely the amount of time it would take to travel from the office to my home in connecticut, where i had plans to spend the weekend. Nov 05, 2017 l ast summer, alison bechdel returned to the small pennsylvania town where she grew up population. Fun home is a musical adapted by lisa kron and jeanine tesori from alison bechdels 2006 graphic memoir of the same name. Old father, old artificer alison bechdel compares her relationship with her father to icarus, who, upon. Based on alison bechdels bestselling graphic memoir.
A family tragicomic is a graphic memoir that led alison bechdel to commercial and critical success. A family tragicomic is a graphic novel memoir by american. Alison bechdel on her graphic novel family memoir, fun home books. Alison and her brothers have chores at the fun home, but they also manage to play and truly have fun there. The story concerns bechdels discovery of her own sexuality, her relationship with her gay father, and her attempts to unlock the mysteries surrounding his life. Fun home old father, old artificer summary and analysis.
Moreover, the memoir discusses the death of alisons father, who is hit by a truck. The subtitle of fun home a family tragicomic captures a number of aspects of the book. Fun home study guide contains a biography of alison bechdel, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The question and answer section for fun home is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel. Vertigo sparknotes film guide making the reading experience fun. A family tragicomic is alison bechdels first graphic memoir. Fun home won the eisner for best realitybased work. Created for a literature in popular culture class about the graphic novel, this podcast is a visual literary criticism that analyzes the role of fiction in autobiography through a discussion of. One of the hottest shows right now, fun home, is based on a graphic memoir written by. With his uniquely individual style, bryson takes the reader around his house, an 1851 norfolk rectory, and he explores the history of activities that are sometimes very. First, it captures the fact that the story of bruce in the memoir is a tragedy told in the format of a graphic novel a comic. Welcome to the litcharts study guide on alison bechdels fun home. The book touches upon many themes, including, but not limited to, the following. The book addresses themes of sexual orientation, gender roles, suicide, emotional abuse, dysfunctional family.
Your uncle died youre feeling low youve got to bury your mama but you dont know where to go your papa needs. This study guide consists of approximately 31 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of fun home. It has won several award and was nominated for 2007 eisner awards. To put it in less crude terms, both books overflow with selfconscious references to classic literature both use the odyssey in a major way. Alison and her family called the funeral home the fun home. In alison bechdels autobiographical graphic novel fun home. Jun 04, 2015 broadway is getting ready for its most important night. Like fun home, a number of graphic memoirs have achieved widespread success in the 21st century. One of the hottest shows right now, fun home, is based on a graphic memoir written by the daughter of a pennsylvania. By engaging with and drawing a range of visual forms, bechdel emphasizes that cartoon representation, as a genuinely hybrid form or outlaw genre of autobiography in caren kaplans term, is a multimodal form different from both written life narrative and visual or. Essay on the experience of teaching fun home, and why the. The story jumps back and forth in time with a main focus on bechdels relationship. Sep 16, 2016 described by the times of london as a profound and important book fun home. Original broadway cast of fun home come to the fun home.
Fun home must be the most ingeniously compact, hyperverbose example of autobiography to have been produced. Find sample tests, essay help, and translations of shakespeare. Partially based on fitzgeralds wife, zelda, daisy is a beautiful young woman from louisville, kentucky. A family tragicomic is a 2006 graphic memoir by the american cartoonist alison. Particularly revealing is a snapshot of a certain letter from father to daughter, because his indecipherable handwriting means all the reader has is. L ast summer, alison bechdel returned to the small pennsylvania town where she grew up population. Fun home creator alison bechdel on turning a tragic. A family tragicomic, an amazing and awardwinning memoir graphic novel by alison bechdel. Inside fun home, graphic novel turned broadway musical. Alison bechdel, author, alison bechdel, illustrator. Fun home a family tragicomic is the latest work from the highly skilled, insightful, neurotic and wryhumored pen of alison bechdel, best known for her dykes to watch out for comic strip.
One of the longestrunning queer comic strips, dykes to watch out for is over 20 years old, has been syndicated in hundreds of papers, released in over. Alison again uses a fictional myth as a way to understand her fathers behavior, and, further, by comparing the bechdel family home to daedaluss labyrinth, alison hints at the darker secret of the home. The tony awardwinning musical fun home traces the comingofage of lesbian author alison bechdel, from her youth, to her years at oberlin college, and finally to the present, where alison, now grown, is struggling to write her own graphic autobiography. Fun home creator alison bechdel on turning a tragic childhood. In november 20, socha was replaced as medium alison by her understudy, skeggs. The story jumps back and forth in time with a main focus on bechdels relationship with her father, his early death that alison presumes. Sparknotes are the most helpful study guides around to literature, math, science, and more. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Bechdel, who has been working as a cartoonist since the 1980s, took seven years to complete fun home.
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